


The Silence After

by germanjj



Series: Hide From The Moon [4]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Canonical Character Death, Coda, First Time, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-16
Updated: 2013-07-16
Packaged: 2017-12-20 10:06:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/885989
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/germanjj/pseuds/germanjj
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>set right after 3.07 - "Currents"</p><p>It's Stiles who invites him in again.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Silence After

~ +++++++++ ~

It's quiet, after.

After Cora stopped crying and after Scott arrived, demanding explanations, a play-by-play of what happened. It was mostly Isaac talking to him. Derek didn't say a word, isn't saying anything now.

Boyd's body is gone, Stiles doesn't even want to know where to and what's happening with him now. He doesn't think about it. Doesn't let himself care about it. Cora's gone too, gone with him, and Stiles doesn't expect her to be back anytime soon.

Ms Blake is a shaking mess and Stiles watches Lydia guide her carefully out of the loft. Derek doesn't even look up.

"He can't stay here," Scott says to Stiles as if Derek wasn't even there. 

Stiles swallows thickly. "He's coming with me. You take care of Isaac."

They share a silent glance and then Scott nods, walking over to where Isaac is still huddled up against the corner, staring to the ground. 

"Derek," Stiles says to the man in front of him, to the man still kneeling in the water, and already shaking from the cold of it. "Come on, man, we're going."

Derek doesn't react, of course not, but he lets himself be pulled up when Stiles tries, and he's able to get Derek to take one slow step after the other. Together they make it out of the loft and outside, where Stiles pushes Derek into the jeep, buckling him on, before he takes the driver's seat and gets the the hell out of dodge.

 

He doesn't talk during the ride, but when Stiles parks in front of the house, Derek unfastens the seat belt on his own and follows Stiles into the house. 

His dad is not there yet and Stiles is more than just a little relieved about that fact. Explanations on why Derek Hale is in the house, dripping wet and with bloody hands, can wait until the next day. Or forever.

"Come on," Stiles says, redundantly, because Derek walks right after Stiles wherever he goes. 

"Alright." Stiles looks around his room, the normal chaos greeting him. He looks back at Derek, the dripping werewolf standing in the middle of the room, and something stirs inside Stiles' chest, something he pushes down immediately. 

Stiles refuses to think about what happened, about who they lost today, who they lost to Kali and the Alpha Pack. Stiles doesn't think and doesn't care, because going there is dangerous. Opening himself up to the feelings of loss is not an option. Not for Stiles. Not when he barely survived the last time.

"You gotta get out of these clothes, Derek," he says more to himself than to the other man, but is surprised when Derek clumsily pulls at his shirt.

"Wait, wait." Stiles grabs him by the arm, pulls-pushes Derek into his bathroom, where he helps him strip. Derek's shorts are wet too, but they got to stay, there's no way in hell Stiles will go that far and try to get the Alpha Wolf stark naked, even if it was completely innocent and for his own good. Quickly and shallowly, Stiles takes a towel and rubs Derek down, washes the blood off his hands. He pulls one of his own too-tight shirts over Derek's head and leads him back into his room after, simultaneously scared and amazed by how Derek's letting it all happen. 

"Alright, come on," Stiles ushers Derek to lie down and deliberately tries not to think about the fact that - again - he's inviting Derek Hale into his bed.

He waits until the Alpha lies down though, before he runs back into the bathroom, cleaning himself up as fast as possible and changing into shorts and a shirt.

He switches off the light and crawls into bed after Derek, careful not to touch the other man.

He doesn't have to try much. Derek's curled up to the far end of the bed, facing the wall, and Stiles has all the space he could want.

It's silent again. Heavy and deafening, and it weighs on Stiles, trying to press the thoughts and feelings to the surface Stiles been desperately trying to keep away. He feels tired. Exhaustion is taking over like a fright train hitting him, sudden and strong. Stiles lets his eyes fall shut, let's himself settle into the bed.

"You told me to never come back here again," Derek whispers, croaks, into the dark.

Stiles opens his eyes. "Okay _now_ you're talking?"

"You don't want me here."

Stiles groans. "I don't want a lot of things, Derek," he hisses," I don't want the math test on Friday, I don't want the Westboro Baptist Church to exist, I don't want my Dad out there risking his life, I don't want Scott to be a werewolf, I don't want B... " _Boyd and Erica to be dead_ he doesn't say, doesn't have to, because he's sure Derek's hearing it anyway.

"It's not your fault, Derek," Stiles bites out, softer now. "You're here because your place is under water, so shut up and go to sleep, okay."

It stays quiet after. Stiles stares at Derek's back but nothing indicates how Stiles' words have affected Derek. 

"I wasn't supposed to be an Alpha," Derek says, minutes later when Stiles is almost asleep.

"What?" he asks into the semi darkness.

"Laura was. I never was. They made jokes. About me. About how it was a good thing I wouldn't become an Alpha."

Stiles clenches his teeth. "It's not your fault, Derek. You're trying your best."

"Not good enough." 

Stiles hears the slight tremor in his voice, before he notices Derek's body shaking again. From exhaustion or grief or the icecold water Derek had been sitting in, Stiles can't tell. But he sees Derek's hand trembling, the one he has behind his back.

It looks like he's reaching out, consciously or unconsciously, Stiles doesn't care at this point. He'll blame temporary madness if he has to the next morning, but now he's reaching for Derek's hand, taking it in his.

"Sleep, Derek," Stiles whispers and presses his hand. 

There's no reaction for a while and Stiles starts to wonder if Derek can even feel it in his state.

But then he sees Derek calm down, just a little, just enough so Stiles can notice the frame of the other man lying a little more relaxed.

Stiles closes his eyes again, and just before he finally falls asleep, he could swear he feels Derek pressing his hand in return.

~+++++++++~


End file.
